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Published on: June 11, 2014
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Flexible Ni/NiOx-Based Sensor for Human Breath Detection
Le Duc-Anh Ho1, Vu Binh Nam1, Daeho Lee1
1Laser and Thermal Engineering Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Korea.
Materials (Basel, Switzerland)
|January 11, 2022
Summary
Researchers created a flexible breath sensor using nickel/nickel oxide (Ni/NiOx) and laser patterning. This novel sensor detects human breath efficiently at low temperatures with excellent stability and repeatability.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Chemical Engineering
- Sensor Technology
Background:
- Development of advanced gas sensors for breath analysis is crucial for non-invasive diagnostics.
- Existing sensors often require high operating temperatures or lack mechanical flexibility.
- Nickel oxide (NiOx) based materials show promise for gas sensing applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a simple, cost-effective method for fabricating a flexible Ni/NiOx-based breath sensor.
- To evaluate the sensing performance, including response time, recovery time, and repeatability.
- To assess the mechanical stability and understand the gas sensing mechanism.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of Ni/NiOx thin-film using solution-processed NiOx nanoparticle ink.
- Single-step laser digital patterning for creating Ni electrodes and NiOx sensing channels on a polymer substrate.
- Gas sensing measurements at low operating temperature (50 °C).
- X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for mechanism investigation.
- Cyclic bending tests for mechanical stability assessment.
Main Results:
- Successful fabrication of a flexible Ni/NiOx breath sensor via laser-induced reductive sintering.
- Efficient detection of human breath with fast response (1.4 s) and recovery (1.7 s) times.
- Excellent repeatability and stable performance demonstrated over 10,000 bending cycles.
- Decoupled analysis of temperature and chemical component effects on sensor response.
Conclusions:
- The developed laser patterning method offers a facile route to flexible Ni/NiOx breath sensors.
- The sensor exhibits high performance and superior mechanical robustness for practical applications.
- This technology holds potential for non-invasive health monitoring through breath analysis.
